I feel very strongly about letting people know I'm proud of who I am. I want people to know when they hear my songs it's coming from a specific place. The new record is specifically for us trans women: that we can sing about our pain, being ostracized by our lovers, who are ashamed of us in a way. There's no pop music like that for our community. I wanted to contribute in that way.

New York is very intense. Every time I go back to New York, I'm starting from scratch. You could have all these achievements - records, a tour - and then you get home and get back to the basics. It whips you into shape.

There are definitely many adventures on the road with Jessica 6. It sometimes feels like we're in a movie. I was recently kidnapped by 2 taxi drivers in Moscow. They drove me over 2 hours out of town till I started to cry then they drove me 3 more hours finally to my hotel!

I'd feel more of the pressures of daily life, obsessed about finding a job or love. Maybe I've taken these things for granted. I go through a lot of other things in the music industry, but "daily life" is a whole different war to fight.

It's different everywhere you go. I'm lucky I'm drawn into people who love and support me. I'm sheltered from that life. I see how all over the world there's so much oppression and pain. I'm living in a bubble.

I get to play with pop music and mix up the style. It's fun to play with party music and nice to get into the club. My big love is songwriting. I write the lyrics and the vocals, and I work with the producers.

The word C.R.E.A.M. - which stands for "Cash Rules Everything Around Me" - is from Wu Tang Clan. This song is about a prostitute who falls in love with her client, who winds up being a drug girl in New York. It's an ode to the girl who works in the streets; it gives her a face and a name and a story. I used to go and admire those girls. I was inspired by their bravery and their femininity, and how they were just putting themselves out there. It was intense to see. It's strange, but they kind of inspired me in a way. I felt it was so bold.